Feeling Droopy

The roses look the way I've been feeling lately - droopy, tired, worn-out! Maybe it's just the weather. We've been getting many heavy thundershowers in the last few days and in between it's stuffy, humid, and gray. The air is just heavy.

Or maybe it's the declination I got from the Brush Gallery. I thought maybe I had a shot because that piece fit in so well with their theme this year. Realistically, the Brush says this show features "the best of art quilts from the US and Canada," which is pretty high status and I guess I'm not quite there yet. Also, I think my friend Vivien's theory that more abstract pieces are getting accepted rather than representational ones may have some truth to it (read her blog entry about it here). Maybe my current work using those sheer aqua fabrics would've fit the bill better.

Also this time of year can be so bittersweet, with the flurry and excitement of end-of-school parties and ceremonies. This week two of my three girls had moving-up ceremonies, one finishing eighth grade, the other fifth. The older they get and the further they move into adolescence, the less influence I have over them, it seems. They seem to be more and more influenced by their friends and popular culture, and it is a struggle every day to teach them values and keep them grounded in what's really important. Now the summer stretches out ahead of us with less structure for them, but longer work hours for me!

But I have the whole morning off today, and they will be in school for a few hours, so I'll have that time to pull myself together. I'll try to approach everything with more of their optimistic attitude and energy, as shown in this photo I snapped yesterday.